Advani buys time to quit, but he has to go

New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veterans L K Advani and Rajnath Singh will be replaced by younger party leaders by the end of December, sources tell CNN-IBN.

The BJP has negotiated a succession plan with the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), the party’s ideological guide, according to which Advani will step down as Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. He will be allowed to choose his time and he is likely to step down before the next Parliament session.

Party leader Sushma Swaraj is likely to take replace Advani, who will be the chairperson of BJP's parliamentary party.

Arun Jaitley will continue as Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha--he is not getting the party president’s post as was being speculated earlier. Once Rajnath Singh completes his term in December a new BJP president will be selected.

The RSS wants the post for someone who is rooted to the party, is not associated with any faction and is non-controversial. These leadership changes will be unveiled within the next three months, perhaps even before the Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly elections slated for October.

The RSS is confident that the party will “overcome” its problems. “The RSS is assured that BJP leaders as a party will stand united and will face all problems and emerge stronger," said RSS leader Madan Das Devi in New Delhi on Sunday.

"We have been given such an assurance and we also feel that they will overcome problems," he said.

The BJP’s official stance though is that there is no leadership change. "Media reports about succession plans in the BJP are all speculation. Nothing has been decided yet. There is no basis for them. There is no vacancy for the leadership positions now. There are procedures and the organisational election process is on,” said former party president M Venkaiah Naidu.

"The RSS does not interfere in the party's daily functioning. Party would decide who should be the leader at an appropriate time," he said.

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Raje likely to step down

Former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on Monday skipped a scheduled meeting with senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu to convey when she would step down as leader opposition in Rajasthan assembly in pursuant of the party’s directive. Instead, Raje sent her son and engaged her son Dushyant Singh as her emissary to meet Naidu.

Dushyant, who is BJP MP from Jhalawar, held an hour-long meeting with and is understood to have discussed with him where Raje will be accommodated in the organization once she submits her resignation and is said to have put forth Raje's demands.

For the record Raje was unwell, and she would not be able to meet any senior leader on Monday. However, Raje may call on LK Advani on Tuesday and after hearing from the leadership about the rehabilitation package , may put in her paper.

BJP sources said Raje wants the next leader of opposition in the state assembly to be from her camp. She has also demanded general secretary's post in the central leadership as well as revocation of the suspension of two of her loyal MLAs.

The party had asked her to resign from the post following the defeat in the Lok Sabha and assembly elections in the state.

Raje’s defiance had caused a great deal of embarrassment to the party. BJP Chief Rajnath Singh had asked her to quit the post of leader of Opposition almost a fortnight ago, but Raje had confronted the party with the fact that she enjoyed support of majority of BJP MLAs in the house.

The BJP leadership summoned Raje to Delhi to meet Venkaiah Naidu to defuse the crisis in Rajasthan even as the former Chief Minister showed some signs of softening over her refusal to step down as Leader of Opposition. The party high command had given her time till August 30 to put in her papers after the short session of the State Assembly.

The former Chief Minister, who held a show of strength of BJP MLAs on Wednesday attended by 70 of the 78 legislators, said in Jaipur three days ago that she was a disciplined soldier of the party and would like to "sort out this problem by talking" to its leadership whose orders were "supreme" to her.
from in.com

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Dalai Lama visits Taiwan typhoon victims amid Chinese anger

The Dalai Lama headed for typhoon hit areas of southern Taiwan on Monday on the first full day of a tour that China has warned will hurt improving ties with the island.

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader headed straight for Hsiaolin, a village where at least 424 people died in Typhoon Morakot, cancelling a press conference that local officials feared could have angered Beijing.

"I'm a monk. I was asked to say prayers for peace," the Dalai Lama said late Sunday after arriving in Taiwan from India. "There is no politics. This is humanitarian in nature."

However, shortly after the Dalai Lama's arrival, the Chinese government issued its second stern criticism of the trip, warning that it would bring about a setback in cross-strait ties.

"The Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan is bound to have a negative influence on relations between the mainland and Taiwan," a spokesman for the cabinet-level Taiwan Affairs Office said, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.
"We resolutely oppose this, and our position is firm and clear. We will keep a close eye on the situation."

China considers Taiwan a part of its territory, and a visit by the Dalai Lama, whom it accuses of wanting to split Tibet from Chinese control, is a source of particular anger in Beijing.

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Hunted In The Brigand’s Shadow

Five years after his death, Veerappan’s widow is suddenly implicated in cases where her husband was the main accused. PC VIIN A midnight operation last November, three Karnataka police jeeps surrounded a woman’s house in Mettur, Tamil Nadu. That woman was Muthulakshmi, the widow of notorious forest brigand Veerappan. Muthulakshmi, who had turned into a human rights activist after her husband’s death, was bundled into a jeep and taken to MM Hills Police Station in the Chamrajnagar district of Karnataka. She was produced in court the next day. The police later clarified that she had been arrested in connection with some old cases against her.
Muthulakshmi has been in jail for nearly nine months now, charged under various sections of the IPC, the Explosives Act, the Arms Act and the now-repealed TADA (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act, 1987). She has been implicated in four cases where Veerappan is the main accused. (Veerappan was shot dead in 2004 near Dharmapuri in an alleged encounter with police.) All offences were committed between 1991 and 1993 in Karnataka.
The cases relate to deadly attacks on policemen, forest department officials and informers in which 33 people were killed. However, while Muthulakshmi was named an accused in all four cases, she was never arrested and was ‘free’ to run her small shop in Mettur, though under close police monitoring.
“The Karnataka police made no effort to make her stand trial in any of the cases. It is significant that she was arrested nearly seven years after judgements were delivered in the cases. Eight people were convicted out of the 126 who faced trial. The rest were acquitted,” says A Marx, a human rights activist who is part of a team campaigning for Muthulakshmi’s release.
Activists believe Muthulakshmi is a victim of a police witch hunt to punish her for seeking justice for victims of police atrocities committed during searches for Veerappan. They point out that the Special Task Forces (STF) of the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu police involved in the Veerappan operations faced several charges of rape, fake encounters and illegal detentions. In 1999, the National Human Rights Commission formed a panel comprising Justice AJ Sadashiva, a former judge of the Karnataka High Court, and CV Narasimhan, former CBI director, to look into the allegations. The panel confirmed the allegations of police excesses in 89 cases — which included one case of rape and 36 cases of “suspicious encounters” — and ordered compensation to the victims. But it did not penalise a single policeman. Muthulakshmi was pressing for the police involved in the atrocities to be punished.NOJ KUMAR reports

“By jailing her, the police want to put an end to her activities,” says G Sugumaran, a Puducherrybased human rights activist. But a senior Karnataka police officer who was part of the STF in the 1990s, claims there is nothing troubling about Muthulakshmi’s arrest. “She must have been absconding all these years,” he said, adding that a proclaimed offender can be arrested anytime. Activists like Sugumaran feel Muthulakshmi recently made too many political enemies. Of the Vanniyar caste, she contested as an independent from the Vanniyar- dominated Pennagaram constituency in the 2006 assembly elections; she didn’t heed PMK leader S Ramadoss’ appeal to withdraw. In 2007, she went to court against a show on Veerappan’s life on the PMK-promoted Makkal TV.

Muthulakshmi’s elder sister Chinnaponnu is taking care of Muthulakshmi’s two daughters and says that she is struggling to support them. The family met Chief Minister M Karunanidhi recently and sought his help in securing Muthulakshmi’s release. “The CM promised to get Amma out soon,” said Muthulakshmi’s daughter, Prabha, to TEHELKA. The family’s hopes are also pinned on the Supreme Court, where a petition seeking bail for Muthulakshmi will soon be filed.

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 34, Dated August 29, 2009

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11 more test positive for swine flu in Kerala

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: With 11 more persons testing positive for H1N1 virus in Kerala, the total number of confirmed swine flu cases in the state has

gone up to 161. Of the new cases reported on Wednesday, five were from Malappuram, three from Kozhikode and one each from Alappuzha, Thrissur and Pathanamthitta, health officials said here today. At present, 36 persons are in isolation wards at various hospitals in the state, while eight patients are in Intensive Care Units, they said. A total of 6,120 persons, including 53 persons who voluntarily turned up for tests, were screened at various government hospitals in Kerala for H1N1 virus yesterday, the officials said. The others were passengers who arrived at the three international airports in the state, they said. Meanwhile, state health officials held a review meeting to assess the situation and also discussed preventive measures to be taken, considering the possibility of more people from other states and abroad coming to Kerala for Onam.
from IN.com

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Kandhar trade-off: Advani knew, says Brajesh

Zeenews Bureau New Delhi: In a startling disclosure, former national security advisor (NSA) Brajesh Mishra claimed on Thursday that LK Advani was in the loop regarding all the key decisions taken with regard to the hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane to Kandahar in Afghanistan. Mishra rebutted Advani’s contention that he was unaware about IC-814 being taken from Amritsar to Kandahar by terrorists. He also rejected the view that Advani did not know that a cabinet minister (Jaswant Singh) would be flying to Kandahar to secure the release of the hostages in exchange for the three most wanted terrorists. Speaking on the issue, Mishra said that a proposal was made in the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) that Jaswant Singh should go and bring back the hostages and it was agreed by the CCS. On being probed about Advani’s claim that he was unaware of the descion to send Jaswant Singh to Kandahar, he said, “I am not going to get into anything that then home minister Advani said. I will only draw attention to the fact that key members of the cabinet committee on security (CCS) George Fernandes, Jaswant Singha and Yashwant Sinha have very clearly said he (Advani) was there.” “Let put it more charitably as George Fernandes said, may he has forgotten, quipped Mishra.
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Also, a news channel has quoted Mishra as saying, “LK Advani knew all about the IC-814 hijacking. Advani agreed to send the plane to Kandahar to free the hostages. The terrorists had threatened to kill all the 160 passengers onboard. Advani knew that Jaswant (Singh) was on the plane with the terrorists.” Advani had been claiming all along that he did not know that Jaswant Singh was on the plane with the three dreaded terrorists to Kandahar. The former NSA added that it was one of the most difficult decisions the NDA government had to take. Giving details of the trade off, Mishra said, “Initial demand was for release of 36 terrorists and 200 million dollars as ransom and interned remains of some terrorist buried here. There was a unanimous ‘no’ in the CSS on it. Later negotiations began and it was whittled down to the release of three terrorists in lieu of saving the lives of 160 odd passengers.” Taking on the media Mishra rued, “I don’t want to be too critical of the media but at that time they were sponsoring the family members of the passengers to protest seeking release of terrorist.”
Mishra’s views on the Kandahar hijacking comes days after former External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh embarrassed Advani by saying that he (Jaswant Singh) "covered" up for him (Advani) when he said that the former home minister was not aware that he was going to Kandahar with three terrorists in 1999.
Supporting former NSA Brajesh Mishra’s claim that Advani had full knowledge of Kandhar, Ex FM Yashwant Sinha said that “It is true that in that CCS meet in Dec 1999, LK Advani was present and had full involvement in the decisions taken.” “The decisions of the Cabinet Committee are recorded and they are not a matter of personal opinion. The CCS meet minutes need to be examined for clarifications,” he said. “IC-814 is a matter of recent history and not a matter of party hence LK Advani should come out and clarify on what happened,” he added.

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Shourie only has to clarify comments

New Delhi: Arun Shourie's attack on Monday was described as "gross indiscipline" by BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy and by the head of the party's disciplinary committee Ram Naik. However, on Tuesday, the BJP decided against expulsion, suspension or even giving a show-cause notice to Shourie. All he has to do is "clarify" whatever he has said about the party.

Shourie had said that the BJP was being run as a "private party" and wanted a total revamp beginning with the top leadership. He had suggested that the RSS take charge of the BJP's affairs. He even criticised the expulsion of Jaswant Singh and called his book on Pakistan's founder Jinnah a "scholarly work". He also dared the party to expel him if it wanted to.

On Tuesday afternoon, BJP office bearers held a meeting chaired by BJP president Rajnath Singh. It took hours to decide on the course of action.

The concern was that even a show-cause notice could invite a detailed, devastating and embarrassing reply. Leaders who were baying for his blood earlier went quiet by evening. They finally decided to play safe and ask for a clarification. The letter to Shourie was still being drafted and a time limit decided upon for the response.

BJP leaders said the party did not want to act in haste after its summary action against Jaswant Singh. It was, however, clear that Shourie was not a soft target and he may have more aces up his sleeve to embarrass different leaders of the party.

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Massive car bomb as Afghan race runs tight

KABUL (Reuters) - With early results on Tuesday showing Afghanistan's presidential race neck-and-neck, a massive truck bomb that killed 40 civilians and wounded 60 in Kandahar showed the scale of problems facing the eventual winner.

The blast took place shortly after dusk as Afghans across the country were breaking their daily fast in the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

There was confusion over whether the explosion was from one big truck bomb or a series of smaller, simultaneous devices. A Reuters witness saw a restaurant set ablaze and a shop and several houses flattened.

Provincial Governor Ahmed Wali Karzai told Reuters that 40 people were killed and more than 60 wounded, all civilians.

Four U.S. servicemen were killed by a roadside bomb elsewhere in the south, NATO and the U.S. military said, making 2009 the deadliest year for the growing contingent of foreign troops in eight years of war.

Earlier, the first partial results from last Thursday's election had President Hamid Karzai and his main rival running neck-and-neck, suggesting a close race headed for a second round.

The country has been in political limbo since the vote, with Karzai and chief rival Abdullah Abdullah each claiming victory. Abdullah and other challengers have accused Karzai and the authorities of widespread fraud.

The elections are a major test for Karzai after eight years in power and for U.S. President Barack Obama, who has poured in thousands of extra troops as part of his new regional strategy to defeat the Taliban and stabilize Afghanistan.

ENVOY URGES CAUTION

The partial election results, based on 10 percent of votes counted, gave Karzai a slight edge with 41 percent against 39 percent for Abdullah, his former foreign minister -- a difference of about 10,000 out of about 524,000 valid votes counted.

Election officials warned against drawing conclusions about the final count from the initial samples. They promise to provide daily updates but the complete count is not due until Sept 3.

U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke urged caution, saying the early results were misleading.

"You don't call it with 10 percent. It's too early to call," Holbrooke, who left Afghanistan on Monday, told reporters in Turkey.

Behind the two leaders, Ramazan Bashardost, a member of the Hazara ethnic minority who ran a quixotic campaign from a tent across the street from parliament, placed third with around 11 percent. Former finance minister Ashraf Ghani won 3 percent.

Speaking after the announcement of first results, Abdullah said it was too early to draw any conclusions, but he would not accept any outcome affected by major fraud.

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Notice to Maya over arson in Joshi's house

LUCKNOW: Rejecting objections of advocate-general Jyotindra Mishra, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Tuesday issued notice to chief minister Mayawati in connection with riot and arson at the residence of state Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi.

The bench also issued notice to CB-CID, governor’s principal secretary, Union government and CBI on the writ filed by Joshi seeking CBI probe into the case.

The division bench, comprising Justice Abdul Mateen and Justice Ashwani Kumar Singh, also directed the state government to submit a progress report on the CB-CID probe into the case. Joshi had claimed that in a bid to save face, the CB-CID had booked five innocents in the case.

Directing the respondents to file counter-affidavit in the matter, the bench fixed October 13 as the next date of hearing.

In the petition, Joshi had stated that while addressing a public meeting on July 15 in Moradabad, she had exhorted the SC/ST women to refuse compensation provided by chief minister under the SC/ST Act.

Joshi further said that she had asked the women to “throw the money on the face of CM Mayawati and tell her that if ever she happens to be a victim of rape then we shall pay Rs 1 crore.”

Though she did not mean to insult Mayawati, an FIR was registered against her under the SC/ST Act in Moradabad on the same day, said Joshi.

Immediately after the FIR was lodged, on the command of the chief minister BSP politicians/MLAs in Lucknow along with anti-social elements and under the protection of senior officials indulged in riot and arson at her residence, she added.

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Mehsud is dead: Pak Taliban

Islamabad

Aug. 25: The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Tuesday formally acknowledged that their chief Baitullah Mehsud is dead.

New TTP chief Hakeemullah Mehsud said Baitullah Mehsud died on Sunday saying it was from wounds in the US missile attack earlier this month.

"He was wounded. He got the wounds in a drone strike and he was martyred two days ago," Hakeemullah Mehsud told the BBC.

It was the first time the militants acknowledged Mehsud’s death, first reported shortly after the CIA missile strike August 5 near the Afghan border.

Last Saturday, the TTP appointed Hakeemullah Mehsud as their chief to succeed Baitullah Mehsud.

Mehsud’s aides earlier denied their leader was dead. Pakistani and US officials said the Taliban have shown no evidence that he is alive. Jockeying for power among his commanders has only reinforced the belief that he is dead.

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62 Indians left stranded in Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur: Sixty-two Indian nationals who arrived here last week after being promised jobs by recruitment agents have been left stranded in the Malaysian capital here.

Tamil daily Makkal Ossai said they had been offered jobs in Masai, Johor.

The 62 men are currently at the Batu Caves community hall for the past five days. One of them C Prabu, from Chennai, said most of them had pawned their jewellery and taken loans to pay for the trip to Malaysia after their agent in India promised them lucrative jobs. —PTI

***

42 injured in Thailand eatery blast

Narathiwat, Thailand: Forty-two people were wounded, at least four seriously, when a powerful bomb exploded outside a restaurant in Thailand’s deep south on Tuesday, the police said.

The bomb, planted in a cooking gas cylinder and left in the back of a stolen pickup truck, was detonated outside a restaurant packed with civil servants.

The attack took place in the main town in Narathiwat, one of three mainly Muslim provinces plagued by five years of separatist unrest.

—Reuters

***

2009 deadliest year for Nato in Afghanistan

Kabul: Four US servicemen were killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan on Tuesday, making 2009 the deadliest year for the growing contingent of foreign troops since the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001. The deaths highlighted the steadily worsening violence in the country, which has been in political limbo since a disputed presidential election last week. Afghan election authorities were preparing later on Tuesday to publish the first partial results from the presidential election, but the tiny sample may do little to resolve a growing war of words on the outcome. —Reuters

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Swine flu claims third victim, Faridabad woman dies at RML

A 44-year-old woman from Faridabad became the third victim of H1N1 influenza in the Capital early Tuesday morning.

The patient, Usha Jain, succumbed to the viral infection at RML Hospital after suffering three cardiac arrests, doctors said.

Jain was referred to RML Hospital from a private hospital in Faridabad on Friday (August 21), her family members have informed.

“The patient passed away this morning after her condition deteriorated rapidly — she has been tested positive for H1N1 influenza,” RML Hospital’s medical superintendent Dr N K Chaturvedi said. Jain was admitted with symptoms of fever, breathlessness and joint pain, according to RML Hospital doctors.

A source in the hospital said Jain’s condition was critical since the day she was admitted. “She was on ventilator support since the first day,” the source said. “She had suffered three cardiac arrests and her blood pressure could not be maintained at normal level despite medication.”

Though she did not fall in the ‘high-risk’ category, doctors said Jain’s condition did not improve as she was on steroids to control her arthritis. “She did not have underlying diseases but her immunity was low due to the steroids she was taking to control arthritis,” said Dr R P Vashisht, the Delhi government’s nodal officer for H1N1.

Hospital authorities said Jain had not undergone any medication even eight days after the first symptoms of swine flu, and that led to complications. “She went to a private hospital for medication — that, too, at the last minute when her condition had worsened,” Dr Chaturvedi said.

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CRICKET LATEST

Total: 220 for 3 in 72.0 overs Run Rate: 3.06
Sri Lanka Innings

Full Scorecard | Flash Scorecard

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Batsman Status Runs Balls 4's 6's

Mahela Jayawardena


On Strike


68


149


6


0

Thilan Samaraweera


Not Out


50


92


7


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Bowlers Overs Maidens Runs Wickets Wides No Balls

Daniel Vettori


24


7


61


2


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1

Jesse Ryder


1


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13


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Live Commentary - Summary

Full Commentary »
71.5: J Ryder to Samaraweera, Good length ball on middle. Samaraweera has played it towards mid-wicket. Two runs added to the total.
71.4: J Ryder to Samaraweera, FOUR! A length delivery outside off which Samaraweera drives superbly through the covers for a boundary. That was a great looking shot.
71.3: J Ryder to Samaraweera, Driven through the covers by Samaraweera.
71.2: J Ryder to J'dena, Good length ball on middle. J'dena flicks it away with a wristy shot and they have enough time to comeback for three.
71.1: J Ryder to J'dena, J Ryder bowling from over the wicket. J'dena has played that with the full face of the bat.
71: D Vettori to T Samaraweera, Full length delivery just outside off. It's been driven superbly through the covers for a single but they get an overthrow as McCullum fails to gather the return.
70.5: D Vettori to Samaraweera, Defended off the front foot by Samaraweera presenting the full face of the bat.
70.4: D Vettori to J'dena, Full length delivery on middle. Played to mid-wicket region by J'dena for a single.
70.3: D Vettori to Samaraweera, Full length delivery on middle and leg. Samaraweera has played it towards mid-wicket for one.
70.2: D Vettori to Samaraweera, Samaraweera has played that off the front foot and into the ground.
70.1: D Vettori to Samaraweera, Samaraweera has pushed it to the cover region.
70: J Oram to J'dena, J'dena has played that with the full face of the bat.
69.5: J Oram to J'dena, J'dena has played it to the point region.
69.4: J Oram to J'dena, J'dena shoulders arms to let that one through.
69.3: J Oram to J'dena, J'dena has played that with the full face of the bat.
69.2: J Oram to M J'dena, FOUR! A good length delivery, driven on the rise straight back past mid-on for a boundary.
69.1: J Oram to Samaraweera, Good length ball on middle and off. Driven through mid-on by Samaraweera. They pick up a single.
69: D Vettori to J'dena, Defended off the front foot by J'dena presenting the full face of the bat.

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